5. A HAT-TRICK OF PENALTIES
Bobby Collins achieved this remarkable (although by no means unique) feat on 26 September 1953 when in a 3-0 defeat of Aberdeen at Celtic Park in front of 26,000 fans, Bobby sank three penalties.
6. AND THEY GAVE US JIMMY McGRORY…
Even now, some thirty seven years after he died and some eighty two years after he gave up playing, there will not be many alive who have not heard of James McGrory and who do not associate the name irreconcilably with Celtic.
If they were ignorant of this mighty man, then all they have to do is listen to the first words of the Willie Maley song “And they gave us James McGrory and…”
It was somehow fitting that McGrory was born some ten days after his predecessor and forerunner Jimmy Quinn scored his iconic hat-trick in the 1904 Scottish Cup Final. He died on 20 October 1982 after a lifetime of service to the club, and is buried like so many old Celts in Dalbeth Cemetery, not far from Celtic Park.
It was a frosty, foggy midwinter’s day 1935 that he overtook the record of Hughie Ferguson in a game against Aberdeen at Celtic Park. The goal which actually broke the record as a remarkable one. A hard low cross from Johnny Crum and McGrory, disdaining personal safety on the hard ground, dived full length to bullet the ball into the roof of the net.
Young Celtic fans said to their dads
As midwinter fog hung hoary
You can keep your Santa Claus
Cos I’ve got James McGrory.
He ended up with 440 League goals and 550 in all games.
